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Inmate killed in Michigan prison was serving time for sex crimes

See update following story below..

1-15-16 Michigan:

FREELAND, MI — The Michigan State Police have released the name of an inmate killed at the Saginaw Correctional Facility, but police are withholding the name of a prisoner suspected in connection with the death.

Lt. David Kaiser confirmed that 23-year-old Jason N. Turnbull died Wednesday, Jan. 13 in the Freeland prison. Turnball was serving a minimum of 10 years in prison for third- and fourth-degree criminal sexual conduct in Livingston County.

Kaiser said an inmate suspected in connection with Turnbull's death will not be identified until formal charges are issued.

About 9:30 p.m. Jan. 13, prison staff was alerted to an assault they said was occurring between two cellmates. Staff rushed to the cell where they found Turnbull unresponsive.

Turnbull was later pronounced dead.

It's the second inmate to die at the prison in a little over a year.

Steven D. Sandison killed Theodore Dyer on Oct. 30, 2014. Sandison told a Saginaw judge that he killed Dyer "because he was a child molestor." ..Source.. by Bob Johnson



|Prison inmate to face murder charge in death of sex offender cellmate

4-5-2016 Michigan:

SAGINAW, MI — Prosecutors have charged a 24-year-old man in connection a January homicide at the Saginaw Correctional Facility.

Timothy R. Dickerson faces an open count of murder in the Jan. 13 death of Jason Turnbull at the state prison, 9625 Pierce in Tittabawassee Township.

Turnbull, 23, died about an hour after what authorities have said was an assault that occurred about 9:30 p.m. between two cellmates. Prison staff found Turnbull unresponsive in the cell, authorities said.

No weapon was found in the cell, said Michigan Department of Corrections spokesman Chris Gautz. The cellmate accused in the assault was cooperative with staff, Gautz said.

Corrections staff later transferred Dickerson to another prison; records show he now is housed in Security Level IV, the second-highest security level, at the St. Louis Correctional Facility.

Dickerson was imprisoned on a six- to 15-year sentence for two counts of unarmed robbery in Alpena County. Turnbull was serving a 10- to 15-year sentence for a single count of third-degree criminal sexual conduct by force or coercion and four counts of fourth-degree criminal sexual conduct by force or coercion in Livingston County.

The Saginaw County Prosecutor's Office on Monday, April 4, issued charges against Dickerson, and District Judge A.T. Frank issued the warrant charging Dickerson.

Court officials soon will schedule a video arraignment for Dickerson.

An open count of murder includes first-degree murder and second-degree murder. The former carries a mandatory penalty of life in prison without the possibility of parole, while the latter carries a maximum penalty of life with parole. ..Source.. by Andy Hoag



Man gets 20 years for prison murder of sex offender cellmate

10-31-2016:

SAGINAW, MI — A former Alpena-area man will serve 20 years in prison for killing his cellmate in the Saginaw Correctional Facility in Freeland.

Saginaw County Circuit Judge Robert L. Kaczmarek on Monday, Oct. 31, sentenced Timothy R. Dickerson to 20 to 40 years for second-degree murder.

Dickerson, 24, pleaded no contest to that charge in September for killing Jason Turnbull on Jan. 13 at the state prison at 9625 Pierce in Tittabawassee Township.

Because he was in prison at the time of the murder, Dickerson did not receive any credit for time served.

The 20-year sentence that Dickerson received was recommended by prosecutors, who also agreed to drop an initial open count of murder as part of Dickerson's plea agreement. That includes first-degree murder, which carries a mandatory penalty of life in prison with the possibility of parole; second-degree murder carries a maximum possible penalty of life with parole.

"We felt that the punishment was fair based on the totality of the circumstances," said Chief Assistant Prosecutor Christopher Boyd.

Turnbull, 23, died about an hour after what authorities have said was an assault that occurred about 9:30 p.m. between two cellmates. Prison staff found Turnbull unresponsive in the cell, authorities said.

No weapon was found in the cell, said Michigan Department of Corrections spokesman Chris Gautz.

Turnbull was serving a 10- to 15-year sentence for a single count of third-degree criminal sexual conduct by force or coercion and four counts of fourth-degree criminal sexual conduct by force or coercion in Livingston County.

"There were no indications from the investigation that that was the motive," Boyd said of Turnbull's convictions. "There were indications that it had something to do with a disagreement between the two."

At the time of Turnbull's death, Dickerson was serving a six- to 15-year sentence for two counts of armed robbery in Alpena County. His earliest release date was July 26, 2015, or about six months after he killed Turnbull.

Dickerson now is in Security Level 5, the highest such level, at the Ionia Correctional Facility. by y Andy Hoag

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